Love
by thechamelioncircuit
Summary: Orthomyxiviridae. A virus that does not agree with Time Lord's. Well, not her Timer Lord at least. I do not own. R&R!


"Love"

River was terrified. Truly, properly, 'I can't do anything to help' terrified. Not for herself, but for her husband. He was unconscious, had been for some time now. He was ill with Orthomyxiviridae, a virus that definitely did not agree with Time Lords, well. That particular Time Lord. She had begun to worry when he actually admitted he didn't feel well. He never willingly admitted to feeling any less than one hundred percent. If he asked for help, even from River, it meant he was really hurting.

She took him to the med bay and ran a health scan on him. He had a fever of twenty-one degrees, and his hearts were racing at 100 BPM. His fever-hazed eyes followed her as she moved over to a cabinet and grabbed a seemingly random hypo spray. He didn't even flinch when she pressed it against his neck, barely giving her time to catch him as his eyes rolled to white and he slumped against her, unconscious.

Now, she was lying in their bed, clutching him as close as she could whilst his body shook from the beginnings of a febrile seizure. He was hot. Way, way too hot. She had to get him cooled down or he would surely die. She swiftly got up and carried him to their adjoining bathroom and set him in the large bathtub. Having stripped him of all but his boxers long ago she got right to turning on the tap as cold as it would go.

He jolted awake as soon as the cold water touched his body. His unfocussed eyes wandered wildly around the room before finding River. He squinted at her, trying to see if it was really her or not. She leaned forward and lovingly kissed his forehead. Recognition shone in his eyes at the familiar brush of her mind against his. He smiled faintly and relaxed against the tub. She began cupping water in her hands and gently poured it all over his upper body and neck, making him shiver from the cold. After a few more minutes of enduring the icy coldness he finally spoke up.

"R-river. S-s-stop. It's t-too c-cold. P-please." He whimpered, tears of pain streaming down his red flushed cheeks. "It hurts s-so bad River."

"Shh, shh, love. You're okay sweetie. You're just a bit too warm. I know it hurts. I know. Just a little bit longer my love. I promise." She soothed the distressed Doctor.

"H-how come my head h-hurts so bad River? I don't l-like it. W-why won't it stop hurting?" he sobbed, the pain in his head steadily worsening.

River couldn't take it anymore, she pulled him out of the tub and into her arms, not caring about how soaked her clothes got. He wrapped his arms around her neck and curled against her warm body as much as he could. River grabbed the warm fluffy towel that The TARDIS had left out and wrapped it around the shaking Time Lord. The aforementioned time/ship hummed consolingly and raised the room's temperature a bit, making River smile in gratitude. She shifted a bit; careful not to disentangle The Doctor and pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. To her absolute relief his temperature was much cooler than it had been. And he seemed to be free of pain. The Doctor pressed his face into her wild curls and wrapped his arms around her all the tighter, making it damn near impossible for her to move. River sighed and gently pried his arms off of her neck and settled him on the floor next to the tub, making certain that the towel was wrapped firmly around him. He whimpered as his cold skin touched the icy ground and seemed to shrink as he curled into himself against the cold. He looked up at River with such a pleading expression that it broke her hearts to leave him for any amount of time, but he needed dry clothes. And she'd have plenty of time to be soft when he was safe in bed.

The Doctor was cold. He didn't know why River left him on the floor, and he definitely didn't like it. He tried to get up but only ended up sprawled across the floor. The TARDIS hummed soothingly and gently brushed his mind. He relaxed and let her singing calm him, he was so very tired. One little kip wouldn't hurt. He retained consciousness just long enough for River to return. The last thing he saw before darkness claimed him was her lovely face peering down at him worriedly.

He came to sometime later to find himself in a much more comfortable place. His bed was soft under him, and River's warm body wrapped around him made slipping back into sleep almost irresistible. But there was something he needed to do. Something he had been meaning to do for a while... Something to do with how cold the TARDIS was for his human friends... THE HEATING! He had to fix the heating. Amy and Rory had been pestering him about it for some time. He didn't have anything else to do, so he slipped out of bed and staggered to the door. Everything was a bit spinnier than usual, but he didn't mind that much. It wasn't until he stumbled into a painfully solid wall that he started to worry. He slid to the floor and groaned in pain. He wished River was there. She'd kiss him, and call him sweetie, and make him feel better. She always made him feel better. He felt tears slide down his face. Why did he miss her so much? She was just down the hall! He really should have gotten up but he doubted he could. And oh god... he was properly crying. He hadn't properly cried in years. It was completely, utterly, embarrassing but he couldn't seem to stop. He heard a small gasp and felt the air around him displace as someone kneeled next to him and pressed a soft palm to his forehead. The touch startled him and he cried out. He opened his eyes wide as River lifted him into her arms. She shushed him and softly berated him for leaving. He moved restlessly in her grasp, forcing her to hold him closer. She walked swiftly back to their room and sat him on the bed. His little escapade left him exhausted, and a bit worse for wear. His skin was pale as snow, and his hearts practically thrummed in his chest. She wanted to be positive that he'd be okay but she didn't know. She didn't know and it tore her apart. His temperature was still way hotter than normal, his hearts were up to 115 BPM, and his breathing didn't fare much better. His whole body shook with ill suppressed sobs.

"River?" He whimpered, blindly reaching out for his wife. "Where are you River? Please? Make it stop. Make it stop, it hurts."

She couldn't take it. Couldn't take hearing him sob from pain. Couldn't take hearing the raw terror in his fading voice. Couldn't take not being able to help him.

"Shh sweetie." She soothed as best she could. "Hush my love. I'm right here. Open your eyes darling, I'm right here. I promise."

"River?" He whispered as he cracked his eyes open a bit. "'M so tired River. 'M so tired 'n my head hurts. River? 'Love you River. 'Love you lots."

"I love you too sweetheart. And I know you hurt. Just go to sleep darling, you'll feel much better.

"Don't wanna sleep River." He whined, even as his eyes drifted shut.

"Sweet Dreams my love." River whispered and pulled him closer to her.

Thankfully he didn't attempt any more escapes, seemingly content with drowsing in Rivers arms.

The next morning came about with The Doctor sleeping peacefully and River quietly reading a book. She was glad that The Doctor had finally been able to get some decent rest after the rubbish day he'd had. His fever hadn't broken yet, but it was much lower. And his breathing was deep and regular, heart beats back to their normal rhythm. River found herself gently stroking her husband's soft hair, a familiar habit that usually made him purr like a cat. Even now he leant into her touch. She smiled to herself at his blissful expression, if only he could always be that happy. Times like that made him look as young as thirty, but anyone who had seen his ancient eyes knew better. And River prided herself on knowing her husband better than most.

He was a conundrum, an impossibility, a paradox. (As ironic as it seemed) A paradox that River had spent most all of her lives learning about. She would always learn more of course, the man was ever changing! Every time she turned around he had something new going for him, like an odd hobby, or a new hat that Amy would scoff at and she would shoot. She supposed it had something to do with the fact that he had all the time in the universe on his hands. And she knew firsthand just how vast his mind was, which also explained his seemingly endless knowledge of everything. (Except Human social norms. Honestly, he practically lived on Earth but he couldn't assimilate if he tried.)

The Doctor stirred and mumbled random words in Gallifreyan, effectively cutting of River's train of thought. She gently brushed back his hair as his eyes fluttered open and focused on her. He smiled happily and snuggled against her, savouring her nearly-human warmth.

"Good morning sweetie." She whispered.

"Hmm." Was the only reply.

"Feeling any better?" she prompted.

"I 'ave a head ache." He slurred sleepily. "'Wanna go back to sleep but 'm not tired anymore."

"I think I can help you there sweetie." River said with a smile as she grabbed an orange bottle and a cup of water from the bedside table. She shook out two candy-coloured capsules and handed them to The Doctor. "Eat these." She commanded and watched 'till he obeyed. He then took the water and drank greedily, threatening to drink the cup as well.

"River? Can I have something to eat?"

"Of course." She replied with a smile. Will soup do?"

"Mhmm." He mumbled happily. "I love you River."

"I love you too darling." River answered and kissed his forehead before leaving the room in search of the kitchen.

The Doctor hadn't felt this peaceful in a long while. Despite the headache and the general soreness he felt okay. And River was there, so that was really good. He wasn't sure how long he'd been ill for, but he didn't really care all that much. Plus, the medicine River had given him was working, his headache had diminished significantly. He was thoroughly content by the time River came back with two steaming bowls of chicken soup.

"You certainly look better." She commented with a smile.

"I feel better too." He replied.

"Good. Sure is an improvement to yesterday." She mused.

"How bad was I?" he questioned a bit sheepishly.

"Let's just say tonight I am _**tying **_you to the bed." She said teasingly.

"That bad?"

She nodded assent.

"Sorry… I don't really remember what happened but it must've been hard for you." He apologized even more sheepishly.

"Don't worry love. You aren't _that _heavy. I managed just fine."

"Oh. What do I have?" he questioned curiously.

"Orthomyxiviridae." She replied without missing a beat.

"Orthomyxi-what?" he exclaimed. "Head not working as well today remember?"

"The flu. You have the flu sweetheart." She answered patiently.

"That's no good." He replied with a frown. "What's my temperature?"

"Eighteen-and-a-half last time I checked." She relayed. "Yesterday it was twenty-one so you're getting better."

"Twenty-one? Are you sure? I mean that's really bad. Actually really bad hardly covers it. That's hot enough to stop my hearts! That's certainly hot enough to have a seizure, and that's never good, 'cause that hurts. And seizures sometimes lead to other things like brain damage and that's very, very not good. And I had a headache which could mean somethiNG HAPPENED RIVER WHAT HAPPENED?" He panicked, effectively scaring River half to death.

"Sweetheart you're fine! Bloody hell, are you trying to give me a heart attack?" she exclaimed, trying to slow her racing hearts. "You think I don't know your maximum temperature? I got you cooled down before anything bad happened. C'mon love, you know I wouldn't let anything happen to you."

"Sorry River…" He whimpered, taken aback by her harsh tone. River never swore. He was surprised to feel tears begin to fall down his face, he hated crying. Why was he crying? It must've been the fever messing with his head. He had to stop. He was stronger than this. He…"

"Don't cry my love. Oh, please don't cry." River soothed, pulling him against her chest and gently rubbing his back. "I'm sorry darling I shouldn't have snapped like that. I just hate to see you hurting. Please don't cry."

"I-I'm sorry R-River." He whispered between sobs. "I just. I can't stop. I guess I got scared, 'cause I didn't want to scare you. And. And I don't like being sick. So I started crying, because it hurts, it hurts really bad River."

River felt tears of her own fall down her face as she listened to her poor husband attempt to articulate exactly _why _he was crying. It saddened her that he thought he had to explain to her of all people, but at least he could explain what was wrong. He normally didn't even do that. She sighed and shifted so his head was tucked under her chin, immediately aware of exactly how warm his forehead had become. Damn that fever. She had hoped that the medicine she had given him would have got rid of it once and for all but it obviously had failed to do so. The fever also explained The Doctor's erratic moods. He always got emotional when he was ill.

River heard a sniffle and peered down at the mop of fluffy brown hair tickling her throat. She pressed a kiss to the top of his head and gently rubbed his back in an effort to get rid of the tension. He relaxed into her touch and sighed contentedly as she worked out the knots. He always had really tense areas from all the running, and as the knots built up he got headaches so River usually ended up massaging his back before he actually hurt it. She reached a particularly bad spot and he cried out when she probed the area. He tensed so as to stop the pain but River was determined to fix it, so she used both hands and practically kneaded the muscle until the knot unwound with a satisfying pop. The Doctor gasped in pleasure at the sudden lack of pain and stretched, popping his back; before settling back down next to River and cuddling into her side. She gently stroked his hair as his breathing slowed and he finally fell asleep.

The Doctor didn't wake the whole rest of the day.

River stayed with him the whole time, alternating between reading and napping. At some point his fever rose dangerously high, but only stayed like that for a bit before it finally broke and allowed him to get some proper sleep. When he did wake she hugged him tightly and peppered his face with kisses; earning a groan.

One thing River knew for sure was she was getting them both flu shots as soon as possible.


End file.
